


The Immortal Girl is Dying

by ruffalove



Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen, Magic, Quests
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-11
Updated: 2018-10-11
Packaged: 2019-07-29 12:58:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16264682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ruffalove/pseuds/ruffalove
Summary: An dying immortal and a mourning man go on a quest to find a city that might not even be real. What could go wrong?





	The Immortal Girl is Dying

The Chilyoja had always been a selfish species, but with good reason. Yes, they had the power to heal others with a single touch, but all power came with a cost. Since every touch cost them a piece of their life force, most preferred to stay solitary, and had retreated into the heavens. There hadn’t been a Chilyoja spotted for years, save one. A relatively young Chilyoja named Lelania chose all those years ago to stay on Earth, separated from her parents and her friends for the sake of healing people. She had been helping people for centuries, but now her life force was dwindling; her hair was turning gray. Lelania had never needed or met another Chilyoja before now, but she was determined to find one to heal her.

 

So, one day, she slung a worn, brown, leather satchel and set out to find Dawngate, the mythical land where her kind dwelled. Home. The night she left, it was raining so hard that she had to find shelter in a nearby city. The man whose house she was staying in allowed her to stay in return for him joining her on her journey. He introduced himself as Colla. Colla’s wife was an Chilyoja, and he hoped to find her in Dawngate. Lelania agreed to let him come along, and the two began their trek the next day.

 

While they walked, the two got to chatting. At first they talked about superficial things, like their favorite colors (Lelania’s was blue, Colla’s was orange) and favorite foods (Colla was shocked to discover that Chilyojas liked pizza just as much as humans did). As they got further and further from home, their conversation became deeper. Lelania told her new friend stories of her parents, and the life they had shared before she left them in Dawngate. Colla shared that his wife, Alva, had wanted to help people, similar to Lelania. However, when her health began to decline, she was unsuccessful in finding someone to heal her. Tears filled his eyes as he recalled holding her in his arms as she faded away. Lelania placed a hand on his shoulder, unsure of how to comfort him. Her powers were useless when it came to emotional pain. His stories were scaring her, too. Is this how she would go? Helpless, weak, unable to keep the light from leaving her eyes? She shook her head and kept walking, Colla alongside her. There was nothing good that could come of being afraid.

 

As she kept walking, Lelania grew weaker and weaker. Soon, she was struggling with every step, but that didn’t stop her from spotting an injured river nymph crying for help alongside their path. She grazed the hurt being’s soft white fur with her shaking fingers and its wounds healed immediately, but she winced as she felt another wisp of her life force leave her body and dance away. Although this decision did not in any way alleviate her pain, it paid off. The nymph gave the two travelers directions to Dawngate as thanks for saving its life. It blinked its wide blue eyes and pointed ahead, saying, “Once you reach the mountain, follow the left path for a day. Then, you will find the place you are searching for.”

 

They thanked the river spirit and hastened on. Days later, as they reached a tall mountain and a fork in the road, Colla grew discouraged.

 

He shook his head and rubbed a hand across his face, groaning, “We’ve been walking for so long, I don't think we’ll ever reach this land! It’s most likely imaginary. I can’t do this anymore.”

 

Lelania tried to convince Colla to keep going, but he waved her off, turned, and began walking back the way they had came. As she watched him grow smaller over the horizon, she wondered if this was how her parents felt when she walked away from them so many years ago. She was saddened to watch her friend go, and wished that they could have had more of a chance to talk and get to know each other. Colla truly did seem like an interesting person, despite being cold at first. After lingering at the fork for a few more moments, deep in thought, she shook her head quickly and continued on by herself up the left path. Not a day later, she reached Dawngate! She retraced her way down the spiraling mountain path to retrieve her friend, who had not yet reached his home, and soon the two entered the city. As they passed through the city’s entrance, painted with vibrant oranges, sunset pinks and cloudy greys, they could see how Dawngate had earned its name.

 

At first, they were greeted by curious eyes. Some Chilyoja children had been playing in the picturesque avenue, but were pulled inside majestic houses by concerned parents who shot wary looks at the two travelers. They weren’t alone in the street for long, however.

 

A imposing Chilyoja greeted them upon their entrance into the city, and Lelania implored him to heal her. “Please, ahjussi, I have been helping people and healing them for so long at the expense of not just my health, but my friendships and relationships as well. Is it not right for me to be healed just once so that I can return to these people in need?”

 

The healer paused for a moment, considering her request. He made a face that didn’t look especially promising, then composed himself and turned away, still thinking. Lelania tapped her foot nervously on the cobblestone path, waiting for him to respond; you could cut the tension in the street with a knife. As the minutes passed by, Lelania began to worry that he would refuse. Not even tugging at her gilded, dangly earrings could distract her.

 

After some time of deliberation, the Chilyoja agreed to heal her, but at a cost. “If you want me to heal you, you must give up your most prized possession.”

 

It was a hard decision for Lelania to make, but the stakes were just too high. She decided to give him her golden ring embedded with amethyst, which she kept with her always. It was the only thing she had left of her Chilyoja parents, but they would have wanted her to keep helping people; at least she liked to think they would. As her frail hand touched his during the exchange of the ring, Lelania felt herself returning to life. It was only as she stood up straight, her hands no longer trembling and her hair a silky brown, that she realized how close to death she had been.

 

During this exchange, Colla had been running through the city, searching for his wife, but she was nowhere to be found. The Chilyoja who had healed Lelania, who introduced himself as

Cody, told them to travel to a field, past Dawngate. They tried to ask him more about why she was there, but all Cody would say was that “it was the place where things who are lost go to be found.” It was less than a day’s journey to the field of which they spoke, covered in wildflowers of every color. A woman stood in the middle of the field, tending to the flowers. She seemed to be translucent, and as they got closer to the wide expanse of colorful land the two adventurers noticed other people around her who seemed to be not quite there. As soon as he was close enough to see the woman’s face, Colla let out a cry and ran to her. As she looked up in surprise, a look of recognition spread across her face, and she smiled, opening her arms. When they embraced, the woman’s fair complexion turned completely solid, and the looks of the wispy figures around her ranged from happiness to jealousy. Lelania felt as if she was intruding on something private as the couple shared a look filled with love, joy, and disbelief. She stood there awkwardly until Colla turned to her. He thanked her for her help and companionship and informed her he had decided to stay with his wife instead of returning home. Lelania nodded, unsurprised, and smiled at them, waving as the couple turned their backs. As Alva and Colla walked farther into the field, their silhouettes became like sunflowers, entwined and swaying in the cool breeze.

 

Since she had no other business in Dawngate, Lelania turned to make the journey home. She wasn’t alone. As she stepped through the city gates, she felt a tug at the hem of her long dress; it was a young girl, a Chilyoja like her, wearing a crown of roses and lilacs. The girl took her hand, making a silent request. Lelania smiled down at her, and the two walked out of Dawngate together. Making their way back to Earth, Lelania and the girl had many days to talk. She learned that the girl’s name was Sadie, and that she was an orphan. Sadie had always wanted to leave the selfish life she led in Dawngate, and like Lelania she was willing to sacrifice herself to help other people.

 

When they reached the small village that she had lived in before this great adventure, Lelania realized that this was her true home. It might not be filled with people of her species, but it was the place where she found people like her. People whose greatest wish was not wealth, or power, but whose hearts were filled with compassion and who longed to care for others. The ones she healed often asked her why she helped them. Before her journey, she never had an answer. Now?

 

She gave them a knowing smile and replied. “All I ever wanted was to better others’ lives. I used to do it alone, but now I have an apprentice by my side and friends in… high places. What more do I need?”

**Author's Note:**

> Ahjussi - ah-jus-SHI - Korean term for sir (아저씨)  
> Chilyoja - chil-YO-cha - Korean term for healer (치료자)


End file.
